Disconnected applications: Your attacker’s favorite blind spot

[AmyL]

In the world of identity governance, it’s easy to focus on the shiny new things. We talk a lot about securing the latest SaaS applications and cloud platforms. But what about the skeletons in the closet? What about that ancient ERP with no API, or that custom app that runs your factory floor?

The dangers of disconnected applications

Disconnected applications are risky because they're hard to connect, so they are almost always excluded from modern IGA programs. This is more than just a headache; it's a massive security risk.

Access to these systems is often managed through emailed requests and manual changes by a small handful of administrators. There are no access reviews, no automated de-provisioning, and no visibility for the security team.

This scenario is exactly what every attacker hopes for in terms of a playbook: An attacker gets credentials for a user who was terminated six months ago but whose access to the legacy financial system was never removed.

They log in, unnoticed, and exfiltrate sensitive data. Because the system is disconnected, SOC and SIEM tools have no visibility. This is not a hypothetical, as some reports indicate that over half of breaches can involve orphaned accounts that should have been de-provisioned.

Governing the ungovernable: How we can help

The disconnected application problem is where the "last mile" of governance comes in—bridging the gap between modern identity security and your most challenging legacy systems—and SailPoint is tackling this problem head-on.

We’ve developed a generic RPA integration for SailPoint Identity Security Cloud to support robotic process automation (RPA) platforms and satisfy these “last-mile connectivity” needs for disconnected applications. Enterprises can now use RPA tools and SailPoint together for aggregation and provisioning disconnected applications. 

The problem of disconnected applications is a pervasive identity security issue that affects nearly every organization: If an application can’t be connected, it can’t be governed—and that creates loopholes that could lead to security risks. We can help. Reach out to learn more!